The Wayward Sister
by Mugiwara.Ninja
Summary: A fight between Margo and Edith! *Set in distant future. See Table of Contents/Summary for the complete summary and details.
1. Table of Contents and Summary

Author's Note:

This fanfic is something I randomly thought up because I was trying to explore the different avenues the girls could take as the future unfolded. I chose to set the timeline in the distant future so that would allow me more room to create more freely and hopefully steer away from all the stereotypical storylines. My favorite character, as you'll soon learn, is Edith followed closely by Margo. Despicable Me has quickly become one of my favorite movies because of its originality and other personal factors. This fanfic is constantly undergoing changes, tweaks, and adjustments for a fuller, richer story reading experience. I've put much thought into the plot and how the story will progress so I'm hoping that you readers will be thoroughly satisfied with the twists and turns this story will take. If I make any changes throughout the middle of the story be sure I'll post an update at the newest chapter so you don't miss anything! PLUS, this first chapter here will be an easy way to check for updates! As I add chapters, I'll add their titles to the list below so you only have to check this page for an update. Just to make this as convenient as possible.

Also know that for a better story I'm always looking for improvements, suggestions, ideas, and constructive criticisms. Flames don't fall into any of those categories. Also note that flaming and other derogatory comments don't help with anything so for the sake and sanity of myself and those around me; please refrain from posting them. Thanks!

Hiding in Plain Sight,

Ninja

Summary:

Set in the distant future; the girls are now grown. Gru's house is no longer buzzing with little feet running amok—it's quiet and almost lonely. Agnes is nearing the start of her first year of college and Edith has disappeared. After an explosive fight with Margo, she vanished. It's been over a year since anyone has seen or heard from her. And now that Margo's biggest plan ever is about to get underway, she needs Edith's help. But can the bitter sibling put the past behind her?

The quarrel between Margo and Edith should be the least of their worries.

If only they knew…

Chapter List:

Chapter One: Family Tradition

Chapter Two: The Letter E

Chapter Three: Criminal Advantages

Chapter Four: Normal Life and Sisterly Advice

Chapter Five: Understandably Frustrated

Chapter Six: Part One, Behind Closed Doors; Gru's Secret Soft Side for Christmas

Chapter Seven: Resolve, Intrigue, and Sweet Vengeance


	2. A Family Tradition

Chapter One: A Family Tradition

So many years had rolled through this still well kempt home that towered over the rest of the neighborhood. It still looked daunting enough to scare away unwanted guests and the yard was still desolate looking. The desolate look was a trademark of this particular property, but despite its rough looking exterior the house was actually in very fine condition.

The decorations inside had slowly changed over the period in which Gru had adopted his three daughters. The daunting array of medieval weaponry and newspaper clippings were replaced by family photos and things the girls had insisted were normal. Gru hadn't been too partial to the changes at the time, but as they all slowly moved out and into their own lives Gru came to treasure the preserved memories—Agnes' first missing tooth, that Edith had accidentally knocked out from them jumping on their beds. Their first day of school under Gru's care, Edith's first invention (Which didn't exactly work as planned), Margo's 11th birthday (the first birthday celebrated as a family)—it was all there, plastered on the walls and covering the shelves.

Gru took solace in the fact that they would still have a family dinner once a week. It was always pizza with stuffed crust; that was tradition. But then, Margo and Edith had _that_ fight—the biggest fight Gru had ever seen between any of his girls. He could remember it almost as clear as day. Only because of how bad it had been…

_"Why are you doing this to me Margo! You should be happy for me!" Edith accused, crossing her arms over her chest._

_ "Edith, you know why!" Margo replied, "You don't exactly have the best track record when it comes to regarding the safety of those around you—including yourself!"_

_ Edith scoffed and rolled her eyes."Quit acting like you're smarter than everyone else. It's my life and this is what I want to do. So if you can't support me—_

_ "Me not support you?" Margo retorted, sticking a finger in her younger sister's face, "That's the furthest thing from the truth and you know it!"_

_ Edith pushed Margo's hand away. "Then why is this a big deal?"_

_ "Because I don't want you to get hurt!"_

_ Edith adjusted her hat. It was no longer pink as she had outgrown that hat years ago. The dark blue one she wore now was one Margo had gotten her for her 9__th__ birthday. She had worn it faithfully since outgrowing her pink one._

_ "You know what Margo," said Edith in a dangerously even tone, "You just don't believe in me __**and**__ I'm not doing what __**you**__ want and so it's frustrating you." Margo gave a small look of surprise. "Yeah, I'm a lot smarter than you thought huh? Just because you're my older sister doesn't give you the right to decide my life for me. I'm going to this college and that's final. You know why? Because it's what __**I **__want, not what __**you**__ want. I'm Edith, you're Margo, and this conversation is over."_

_ Edith turned away and started to storm off, but got hung up by someone catching her arm. She glared over her shoulder at Margo and yanked her arm away. The days of a sullen girl who pouted and sulked when things didn't go her way were long gone. Edith was known for her quick temper in situations like this. Her quick tongue didn't help matters either._

_ "Leave me alone Margo. I mean it."_

_ The older sibling's cheeks were flushed and Edith could see anger in Margo's eyes behind her stylish frames. For a brief second—and only a brief second—Edith considered getting her point across in a different way, but she knew better. There were a dozen reasons why she couldn't resort to violence; the biggest was the fact she wouldn't be able to live with the regret._

_ "You know what Edith? Fine, just fine! Go off and be reckless with your life, but when you ruin it don't come crying to me! I'm just looking out for you, like I've __**always**__ done! So excuse me for caring about you! Why can't you show some consideration after all we've been through?"_

_ "Glad to know that you're behind me on my decisions," said Edith in a quieter voice, "I thought you of all people would be happy for me—especially after all we've been through. Guess I was wrong."_

_ The statement shocked Margo, but not because of what she said. The look on her younger sister's face and the tone behind her voice told Margo that she was hurt, very hurt. As she opened her mouth to say something, Edith took off the dark blue beanie and shoved it into Margo's hands._

_ "I don't want this anymore."_

That was the last time Margo, Agnes, or Gru had seen Edith. Margo kept the hat, praying to see her sister and hoping that she wasn't…well, dead. The whole argument haunted Margo and when she looked back on it she felt pretty stupid about the whole thing. That argument had been about Edith's future in college and the degree program she had chosen; Destruction and Chaos. Edith had been right, but she was also right in why she worried. After all, her sister was one of those people who would disregard their own safety just for the thrill of watching others squirm by her own inventions.

Now it had been a little over a year and still no one had heard from Edith. She had basically vanished after that big fight with Margo. It was hard not having her around to help balance out Agnes and her grasp on normality—and her continuing obsession with unicorns. Every Thursday still, the three of them had stuffed crust pizza and constant hope that Edith would show up.

"Margo you should see my campus in New York," said Agnes, "It's so beautiful! Plus it's right outside of the city!"

Agnes was attending college to write children's' books. Her main idea for a little series was about a unicorn and three little kittens that had crazy adventures. She had been the only one to latch onto the world outside of villainy unlike Edith who took hold with both hands. Margo was still on the fence when it came to villainous acts.

"That's great Agnes," she responded absently, "What do you want on your part of the pizza this time?"

The youngest member of their family twirled a strand of black hair thoughtfully. She had given up the unicorn horn style hairdo long, long ago. She now sported a lower ponytail that wrapped around her right shoulder. Definitely more stylish than her unicorn pillar.

"Um, just cheese I guess," She replied, "What are you getting?"

"The usual; sausage, mushrooms, and onions."

Agnes made a face. "Eww mushrooms."

Margo rolled her eyes. "That's why we split a pizza Agnes."

"Well duh Margo. You just make sure it all stays on your side of the pizza," she replied, looking her older sister up and down, "Got something on your mind?"

Margo looked at Agnes, trying to give her a blank look, but Agnes' face said otherwise. In the end, all Margo could do was frown and walk around the youngest to sit in the booth. Agnes followed and sat beside her, completely focused on Margo.

"Is it Edith again?"

Margo looked disdainfully at Agnes for bringing up their other sister.

"I miss her too."

Margo sighed. "It just hasn't been the same without her."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, reflecting on the missing family member. Agnes propped her elbow on the table and then her chin in her hand. She twirled a strand of hair with the other hand. Margo frowned slightly, noticing that if she were to have gum she would chew loudly and sound as though she were from the valley.

"So what have you been up to Margo?"

Margo hid her smile. Agnes had always been tactful at changing the mood.

"Well, I think I'm finally ready to put my plan into motion," said Margo, "It's taking a lot of planning, but I think I'm finally ready."

"And this plan would be?"

"Taking over Miss Hattie's and making it better."

Agnes' eyes sparkled at the mention of taking over where they had lived as orphans. Their wicked guardian, Miss Hattie, had made their lives hell until Gru had adopted the three of them.

"She still owns and operates it right?" Agnes asked, receiving a nod from Margo, "Wow, she must be ancient!"

The two of them shared a laugh at the thought of the despicable Miss Hattie being an old, ugly, woman who would soon have no more orphanage to cater to her every beck and call.

"How are you going to do it?" Agnes asked, "Take over the orphanage I mean."

"Well, I've been working the legal side and I've got that figured out," Margo explained, trying to keep it simple and spare Agnes the details she would find boring, "I'm just working on finding someone to help put my plan into motion."

"What about Dad?"

Margo shook her head. "I love Dad, but I need someone else."

Silence fell between the sisters again. Agnes studied Margo's features, slightly concerned. She had a pretty good idea about what was bothering the elder sister, but she didn't want to bring it up again.

"Yeah, but Dad can do anything!"

"Be that as it may Agnes, I need someone who has better knowledge in building things of a scientific and mechanical nature."

"So, someone like the minions then?"

Margo shook her head and sighed. "No, someone smarter, besides, they need a supervisor and I can't monitor them day and night like I would need to."

Agnes chewed on her lip, still twirling her hair through her fingers.

"So can't Dad _and_ the minions help you?"

"What did I just say about Dad?"

"Sorry, I'm just trying to help," Agnes replied, frowning slightly.

Margo brushed a strand of brown hair away from her face and looked down at the table. She traced her finger along the surface as if she were following invisible lines. She didn't want to tell Agnes that she wanted Edith's help to get back at Miss Hattie, but she figured Agnes somehow knew. Edith would have the know-how and she knew the middle sibling wouldn't pass up the chance to get back at the evil hag.

"Where is Dad anyways?" Margo asked.

"I don't know. Probably still in the lab."

As if on cue, Gru entered the kitchen, pizzas stacked in his arms. He set them on the table in front of the girls. The years had been kind to him in ways of appearance. If anything, the more he had aged, the scarier he looked.

"Here we are girls," he said, "Stuffed crust pizza!"

The two girls offered him smiles and opened the top box to examine the contents. They both scrunched their noses up upon seeing the pizza. It was covered in black olives, peppers, and pineapple. Margo slid the box aside and opened up the other one. Agnes immediately took a slice of cheese pizza and stuffed it in her mouth. She chewed contentedly with a smile on her face and her eyes closed. Margo chose to eat a little more delicately, still lost in thought.

"Margo what is on your mind?" Gru asked, sitting across from the girls and opening his own pizza box.

"What? Oh, nothing it's nothing," Margo replied, taking another bite of her pizza.

"You should really learn to lie better."

"She just misses Edith."

Margo shot Agnes a pointed look and adjusted her glasses. The black haired sibling offered an innocent smile and took a bite of her pizza.

"Is this true Margo?"

Margo poked at the remaining pieces of pizza on her plate, propping her chin on her hand and elbow on the table. She didn't want to go through the conversation about Edith again. It only dredged up memories she didn't care to relive. Granted, if she ever got the chance she would apologize and hope the subject would be dropped forever.

"We all miss her Margo," said Gru, "It isn't your fault she is not with us."

Margo scoffed. "You say that like she's dead."

Gru cleared his throat and studied his eldest. Parenting the three girls had not been an easy task and surprises were waiting for him at every turn, but somehow he had managed. They were his pride and joy, his girls, his…"Little Keetens". He gave the moon up for them. Margo had been a feisty one to deal with growing up because of her intellect. Edith had just been a handful because she liked mischief. And Agnes, well…Agnes had been easiest except for when she used that puppy dog pout of hers.

"I did not say she was dead," Gru stated, "But I know why you are hurting the most from her not being here…"

Margo sighed, willing herself not to cry. Crying over something like this was stupid, wasn't it? She sniffed and shifted in her seat. Suddenly everything was making her feel uncomfortable.

"Yeah…" Margo mumbled, "I just wish things had gone differently…"

Gru took a bite of pizza and chewed thoughtfully. Perhaps now was a good time to bring up what he had been working on down in the lab.

"Margo, I would like to show you something," said Gru, "Agnes you may come as well."

The three of them abandoned their plates and walked to the living room to get onto the lift. Margo and Agnes squeezed on first as the three of them would not fit all together. Seconds after they descended down into the lab, Gru followed. He led them to the room in which the Jumbotron from Times Square was kept. He approached a nearby panel and pressed several buttons, bringing the humongous screen to life.

"This is what I have been working on for the past couple of months…"


	3. The Letter E

Chapter Two: The Letter E

One year. One whole year had gone by and it had been peaceful. Albeit, peaceful in her terms meant doing as she pleased with no one barking in her ear about repercussions. That was peaceful. Still, sometimes it didn't quite feel as good as she had hoped or thought it would. Sure she had accomplished everything she had set out to do, but at what price? Some part of her sanity was left behind that day and no matter how hard she tried she couldn't regain it. A part of her was missing and she was too cowardly to go back for it. Too cowardly to go back for it and too proud to admit she _needed_ to go back for it.

Life in Rippling Flats, Montana was relatively boring if you stuck to what the small town had to offer. If you just used it as a place to build the world's best fortress, then Rippling Flats was your best bet. Being a small town however; that meant keeping your activities away from where it could easily circulate back to you because everyone knew everyone. So when the town's newest resident, a mysterious woman who simply went by "E", moved in there was chatter buzzing throughout the entire town. She turned into the biggest talk on the town because of her mystery and secrecy. Everyone would always jump on the chance to learn some new information on E, although it was always scarce information.

Edith enjoyed the mystique the residents bestowed upon her. She was always excited to hear what new ridiculous theories they would conjure up about her. Each new one was always slightly more ridiculous than the last. If anything, it catered to her mischievous nature allowing her to add to the hype. Something that sort of became a hobby for her…

It was her thousandth trip to that particular diner—her usual spot to catch on the gossip about herself and spread new rumors. Each visit she offered up a different rumor just because of how gullible the locals were.

"Afternoon Hun," the older waitress greeted, "The usual spot?"

Edith nodded and followed the waitress to the corner booth where she always sat. She set her messenger bag on the seat before sliding in after it. Edith liked the corner booth because of the larger table to work on as well as eat.

"What'll be?"

Edith didn't bother picking up a menu. "Two pancakes, side of bacon, cup of orange juice, and a slice of chocolate pie—if you please."

The waitress smiled and nodded. "Coming right up."

Edith opened her bag and pulled out a couple of manila envelopes and a pen. She set the envelopes on the table and pulled out a purple spiral notebook. She set that on the table as well and then picked up one of the envelopes, opening it. She pulled out several printed documents and a couple of photographs. She set the revealed contents aside on the table and looked at the remaining envelope with slight hesitance.

"Here ya go Hun," said the waitress, setting the glass of orange juice on the table, "More business projects to complete?"

Edith smiled. "Something along those lines. How's life been for you Helen?"

The older woman smiled and shrugged. "Same as always; eat, sleep, work, and repeat."

Edith sipped her juice and nodded. "Any new gossip on the town's mystery resident?"

Helen smirked and tucked a lock of wavy salt and pepper colored hair behind her ear. Even though she was just a waitress at a diner in the middle of nowhere, Helen was the authority on gossip about E. Anything you wanted to know, you just had to ask her. All the customers that came through Hal and Helen's Diner fed Helen with information that she gladly passed on.

"Nothing as of late, but the most recent piece of news is that she's a government agent of some sort," Helen said, "I'm not sure if that's true myself, but it fits to some degree."

Edith nodded, resisting the urge to grin and instead pretended to ponder on the statement.

"Well, it does make some sense I suppose," Edith said, "The other day I could have sworn I saw some sort of scanner device on the garage of her home."

"Scanner device?"

"Well, she bent over slightly and something scanned her eye—you know, like in those high security places like you see in movies."

Helen's mouth formed the shaped of an O and she nodded.

"Helen! Order up!"

Helen offered a polite excuse me before she disappeared to retrieve the food that had been prepared. She returned a second later and set some plates down on Edith's table.

"I'll leave to your work," she said with a smile, "Enjoy Hun!"

"Thank you," Edith called after her with a smile.

Helen returned Edith's smile as she picked up the syrup and drowned her pancakes in it. She smeared butter on the top pancake and flipped it over so that both pancakes would have butter. She used her fork and cut a piece off before snatching up a slice of bacon and shoving it in her mouth as well. Edith looked at the unopened manila envelope again, her chewing slowing down as she stared at it and thought. She knew what was inside, but she didn't want to open it. Edith leaned back in her seat, fork still in hand.

In all brutal honesty; Edith missed her family terribly. The last time she had seen any of them; she had fought with Margo and left it at that. It had been a rash thing to do and she knew it—plus she missed her hat. Ever since she had outgrown her favorite pink one, the blue one Margo had gotten her had replaced it. That had been her favorite birthday present of all time, but she never told Margo that. Edith simply hoped her older sister noticed by the way she had worn it just like her previous one.

Edith bit her lip, remembering how Margo had looked when she shoved it back into her hands and walked away. The memory nearly brought tears to her eyes, but she shook her head. Crying was weakness and weakness was failure. Still, perhaps she should suck up her pride and go see them?

"No," she said quietly to herself, "They're probably all mad at me for doing this…"

Edith angrily stuffed another bite pancake in her mouth, thinking of the possible grudge her family was holding against her. They had probably just continued life as though she hadn't existed. She scoffed at the thought, shoving more food in her mouth. That was a family of villains for you—minus Agnes. Edith stopped her hand in midair upon thinking of her younger sister. She laid her hand on the table, fork still in her fingers, thinking about Agnes. There was no way in hell Agnes could hold a grudge. She'd probably just welcome Edith back as though she had just returned from vacation. Typical Agnes to act like everything was okay. Margo was probably still bent on the fact that Edith wouldn't succeed at her chosen field.

"I bet she would eat her words if she knew what all I've accomplished," she said, smirking at the idea.

Edith finally relinquished her grasp on the fork in favor of opening the second manila envelope. She pulled out a fairly large stack of photos and moved her plates aside. She set them in front of her and flipped open her spiral notebook. She clicked her pen and picked up the first photo to analyze. It was a picture of Gru's house dated a couple of months earlier. Margo's car was outside of the establishment and the lights were on in the house. Edith did a couple of calculations and determined that this photo had been taken on a Thursday. Why did that weekday seem so familiar? The next couple of photos were of Agnes in New York touring a college campus. Apparently her little sister was going to write children's books. Edith rolled her eyes. What a boring profession that was, but that was Agnes for you. Next was a set of photos involving Margo. Her older sister was quite the busybody.

"What are we up to?" she muttered, "I know you're planning something to be doing this much work…"

Edith couldn't decide what Margo was up to, but decided to keep closer tabs on it should it prove to yield something interesting. She wasn't above stealing from her sister. It was her right as a villain to do as she pleased and that was one aspect Edith absolutely loved. The next set of photos was of her former home. She flipped through them quickly; nothing interesting going on there.

Wait.

Edith flipped through the set of photos again and frowned. Every couple of photos Margo's car could be found parked outside of the house. Was she possibly working with their dad? Edith studied a photo of Margo exiting her car at the house, completely oblivious to being watched. She didn't seem to be planning anything by the way she looked and the lack of items in her hands. Edith chewed on her pen, looking at her oblivious sister. She checked the dates, looking for possible holidays she was overlooking, but no. There wasn't anything significant about Margo's appearance every Thursday at their childhood home.

Then it hit her. Thursday meant family dinner night with stuffed crust pizza. Edith rolled her eyes and put the pictures down. Her family was living a very boring life compared to her. So far Edith had successfully stolen several famous landmark pieces. Edith knew that taking the whole landmark would be a useless endeavor as the shrink ray her father had only lasted for a limited amount of time. Stealing vital pieces of treasured landmarks seemed more likely. Say for instance; all the gold off of the capital building in Atlanta, Georgia.

Attacking her remaining food with angry ferocity, Edith packed everything back into her bag and stacked her plates off to the side of her table. Her next plan was the biggest yet—for her at any rate. This next heist would get her a very hefty profit; of that she was certain. The only problem was that she needed the help of the one person she was sure would say no;

Margo.


	4. Criminal Advantages

Author's Note:

Mucho, mucho thanks to anvill99 for the reviews! I wasn't going to post this chapter so soon, but the amusing review left on the previous chapter prompted me to reward a third chapter sooner. It may still undergo some tweaking so if there's any mistakes or information that doesn't add up just let me know! But anywho!

Thanks anvill99!

Around here somewhere,

Ninja

Chapter Three: Criminal Advantages

(Recap from chapter one)

_"Margo, I would like to show you something," said Gru, "Agnes you may come as well."_

_ The three of them abandoned their plates and walked to the living room to get onto the lift. Margo and Agnes squeezed on first as the three of them would not fit all together. Seconds after they descended down into the lab, Gru followed. He led them to the room in which the Jumbotron from Times Square was kept. He approached a nearby panel and pressed several buttons, bringing the humongous screen to life._

_ "This is what I have been working on for the past couple of months…"_

Margo and Agnes stared in disbelief at the Jumbotron. Gru rubbed his thumb and forefinger together nervously. That had been a habit he had developed from raising the girls. He was nervous mostly for Margo and what she would think. So far all she was doing was staring the screen with her mouth hanging open.

"Is that…is that—

"Yes, it is."

The three of them viewed the profile in its entirety on the Jumbotron. The person on the screen had blonde hair from what they could tell as it was mostly covered in a very dirty and tattered light gray hat. (If you could call it gray. All of the use and abuse made this hat look like it had been painted by dirt and other various gross things) Her eyes were a grayish blue and had a dark look to them, not the mischievous twinkle they once held. She wore a purple jacket that looked worn and dirty, a black shirt with a pink E on it, blue jeans, and some gray converse that had both lime green and purple shoe strings in them. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest, and neither of them could deny the smirk on her face or the defiant air in which she seemed to carry herself.

The profile Gru had presented them was Edith's. They were just shocked to see that her appearance had changed so much in so little time. It still looked like Edith, but something about her just seemed different.

"Where is she?" Margo asked.

"Rippling Flats, Montana," Gru replied, "It was not easy tracking her down, but I finally managed to do it a couple of weeks ago. I didn't want to show you two because I wanted to be sure that it was her before I did. But I have indeed located Edith."

Margo looked the profile picture of her sister up and down. The person on the screen couldn't possibly be her sister…could she? Everything about the middle sibling was different in the picture, even her demeanor. It was hard to believe that this was the same girl who obsessively wore copious amounts of pink in her outfits every second of the day. Now with just a pink letter on her shirt, she seemed like a completely different person.

"Are you sure this is her?"

Gru nodded. "One hundred percent."

Margo frowned, looking at Edith's picture intently. Had she done this to Edith? Was Edith some rebellious new villain all because of the fight they had? Margo felt her chest tighten at the thought of her having caused Edith's change. This wasn't the sister she remembered.

"How did you find her?" Agnes asked, breaking the tense silence.

Gru hesitated for a second noticing that Agnes didn't seem as surprised or shocked to see Edith. If anything, Gru took her question as more of an accusation.

"It was not easy," Gru replied finally, "Edith's ability to disappear is quite astounding—especially for someone like her. I still do not know how she did it, but that is beside the point. I found her, simply put, because being a criminal has its advantages."

Agnes nodded, knowing her father was just trying to seem cool with his mystique. And, what Gru suspected to be, to cover up her lack of surprise. Margo on the other hand had remained silent and almost oblivious to what Gru had said. She was lost in thought, conflicted on what she wanted to do. Gru had presented her with the opportunity she had been wanting most, but now she was unsure about how to act on it. She wanted to run to Edith and apologize, but on the other hand she didn't. Margo wasn't sure how her sister would react to her sudden appearance. She was only pulled out her thoughts as she felt someone grasp her hand. She looked down at her hand and then at Agnes. The youngest sibling was offering a tender smile.

"I think you should go see her," Agnes whispered.

Margo was shocked, but hid it behind a blank expression. Here was naïve little Agnes seemingly reading her mind and giving her advice. Wasn't it supposed to be the other way around? Where did Agnes get these rare moments of wisdom when people needed it the most?

"I agree with Agnes," said Gru, "I think it best that you go see her first."

"But…" Margo hesitated, chewing on her lip.

"Margo, you need to see her most out of all of us."

Again with the random wisdom.

Margo sighed looking at the floor. They were probably right, but right now she was just too conflicted.

"I'm going for a walk."

Agnes started to follow, but Gru caught her by the shoulder and shook his head. He gently squeezed her shoulder, smiling slightly.

"This is something Margo needs to sort this out herself."

Agnes nodded, looking back at Margo as she turned a corner and disappeared. Agnes was hurting for Margo. She hated to see such conflict arise within her family. She missed Edith just as much as any of them and she wanted to do all she could to help, but she didn't know where to start.

"I hope Margo goes to see Edith," said Agnes looking back at Gru, "I really miss how things were before Edith left…"

"Me too Agnes, me too."

Margo felt numb. The conflict that was bubbling around inside her was all consuming to the point she just felt nothing. She wanted to feel happy and excited to get the chance to see Edith again, but she was plagued with hesitance. Would Edith still be holding a grudge against her or had she moved on? So many questions.

The profile she had just seen didn't seem like her sister. It appeared to Margo that Edith had changed drastically. Maybe not in appearance, but in the way she carried herself.

She stopped outside the house at her car and just stared at it. In the passenger seat was her bag and just poking out of the top was the dark blue beanie she had given Edith.

_"I don't want this anymore."_

The words rang in her ears as she stared at it through the window. Margo felt her cheeks flush as a little bit of anger surged. How could Edith be so rash and just disappear on all of them like this-and over a petty argument nonetheless. Margo stood there for another few moments in silence before letting out a frustrated sigh. This shouldn't be as complicated as it was.

"Why can't I just go see her?" Margo asked herself.

_Because you're ashamed._

Margo frowned. "Ashamed of what; worrying about my family?"

_Ashamed because you have to admit you were wrong._

"Was I really wrong?"

_You are_ a_shamed for not stopping her from leaving that night._

Margo turned away from her car and looked up into the sky, up at the moon. It wasn't full; it was a thick white smudge against the violet evening sky. There were several sections of stars blotted out by passing clouds without threatening to rain; an overall beautiful night. Just as she resolved to go back in and sleep on it, a light clicking noise caught her attention. She surveyed her surroundings for a second before she caught sight of a silvery glint just on the underside of a car across the street. Margo would have thought nothing of it, except that the glint appeared and disappeared quite quickly. She studied the bottom of the car, looking for more movement.

"Great, now I'm hallucinating," Margo mumbled to herself.

She turned to go back inside when the clicking noise echoed to her ears again. She whirled around and caught a glimpse of the same silvery glint disappearing into the storm drain. Something was going on, Margo was sure of it. She frowned and turned to walk back inside. Was someone watching her? With a quick glance over her shoulder, Margo pushed open the front door and closed it behind her. This was definitely something to bring up to Gru.


	5. Normal Life and Sisterly Advice

Author's Note:

Okay, so it's been a minute since I've updated and wow am I sorry. My internet access is limited, but the situation has been updated and hopefully I'll be able to update sooner next time. But just in case I can't I have written several chapters in advance that I plan on uploading in succession to this one.

Ninja

Chapter Four: Normal Life and Sisterly Advice

In the days following the discovery of Edith, Margo had only one thing on her mind; how to apologize and gain the assistance of her sister. She spent endless sleepy nights running plans and ideas through her brain trying to think of every possibility. She tried to keep her worries about apologizing to Edith a secret from Agnes. The youngest sibling was now twittering around the house with worry about finally getting to college.

Gru remained impassive as always, helping out his youngest whenever she needed it. The occasions were rare as Agnes was just like Margo in the ways of organization and planning. She had notebooks of checklists, enough bags to carry stuff for a small army, and mounds of new items for her dorm room. The unicorn décor had run its course and Agnes was only taking more adult items with her. She wasn't leaving the unicorns behind completely. Her first unicorn toy she had received from Gru (as well as the toilet brush imitation unicorn from the minions) was on the checklist. It wasn't brilliantly colored anymore and patches of fluff were missing. The worn out unicorn, lovingly named Sparkles, didn't look as it had when she had gotten it.

Right now, it was placed on her desk beside her as she went over her millionth checklist. Agnes hadn't expected going off to college to require so much planning. Prepare, pack, and leave. That sounded like a good plan, but no. Prepare meant doing what she was doing now.

"Can't sleep?"

Agnes jumped and grabbed a hold of her desk lamp. She whirled around ready to hurl it at the intruder should there be danger. As her eyes landed on who had interrupted her, Agnes relaxed and put the lamp back.

"You scared the hell out of me!" she exclaimed.

A sly grin. "So I noticed. What are you doing up so late? Don't you have to leave for college soon?"

Agnes nodded. "Just making sure I have everything. I'll be too far away to just come back for something I forget."

"Sound reasoning. But are you really ready?"

"Yeah I have everything—

"No I meant are _you_ ready to make this big step?"

Agnes moved from her desk to her bed and climbed on. She crossed her legs Indian style and patted the empty space in front of her. The mattress sunk in a little as her visitor joined her on the bed.

"I guess," Agnes replied, "Being so far away does worry me sometimes…"

"Have no fear Agnes; being the daughter of a super villain does have its advantages."

"I suppose that's true," she said with a small smile, "Dad does have a ship that gets anywhere super fast!"

"Just think of it as moving to a new house."

Agnes was silent as she pondered on the advice she was getting. Being all the way in New York wouldn't be so bad would it? Agnes decided at that moment that college would be the best experience of her life—so far. (Next to being adopted of course!)

"Thanks Edith, I guess you're right. For once."

Edith stuck her tongue out at her younger sister. The two of them had always gotten along good (with the occasional sibling bickering) thanks to being close in age. In general all three of them got along good, but Margo had always played the mother figure so Edith and Agnes were always playing together. As they had gotten older, Edith and Margo had begun hanging out more, as Agnes had latched more onto normality out of the three of them.

"You know Edith," said Agnes very casually, "We still have dinner every Thursday. You should come—we always have stuffed crust pizza!"

Edith's face turned inexpressive at the mention of family dinners. The inner turmoil about her sister beginning to resurface.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea Agnes," Edith replied.

"We all miss you, you know. Margo most of all."

Agnes' last sentence was spoken quietly. The oldest sister was a tender subject with Edith, usually sparking bouts of anger. But not this time. This time, Edith was unusually quiet. Agnes frowned with worry and opened her mouth only to be silenced before she could say anything.

"I appreciate you telling me Agnes," said Edith, "And I miss all of you, but I can't…I just can't…"

Edith adjusted her dirty light gray beanie. She wore the tattered piece of headgear like all other hats before it; constantly. This hat however; Edith wore it for a secret reason. The dirty, tattered beanie was worn as a constant reminder of her family and what had happened between them. She wore the ugly hat so that one day when she was finally able to patch things up with Margo she could wear a better one.

This one just signified a mistake.

"Edith, I know you feel bad and this is really eating at you," said Agnes tenderly, "I can always tell when something bothers you."

"Oh really? And how is that Miss Smarty Pants?"

"You come and visit me like this."

_Damn, she got me there_, Edith mused silently.

"Margo feels just as bad," Agnes pressed, "Please Edith…At least go see Dad or something!"

The two of them sat in silence for a minute. Edith was staring at the bed by her feet, an inexpressive look on her face. Agnes crossed her arms, quickly growing more frustrated.

"You could always just send Dad a letter—

"No."

Agnes looked at Edith with shock. That blunt and forceful answer had caught her off guard. The dark haired sibling recovered quickly though and threw her hands up in frustration.

"You know what? Fine Edith, go sulk somewhere like you always do instead of figuring things out!" Agnes' voice was forceful but low so no one else would hear her, "It's time to stop running away and crying about it all the time and actually do something! But what do I know? I'm just cute, innocent Agnes who's going to be a children's book author and know nothing about anything else other than unicorns and sparkly things."

The rant ended, leaving Agnes angrily pacing the floor now. (Looking eerily similar to Margo) Edith had taken the little rant to heart though she didn't show it. The only thing that really registered across her face was a small grin.

"What are you smiling about now?" Agnes snapped, placing her hands on her hips and glaring at Edith.

"How much alike the three of us are," Edith replied, "You look more like Margo, but you act more like me, except you word it in a way that Margo would. I find this to be amusing." Agnes rolled her eyes, "But that's beside the point. I heard what you said Agnes and I understand where you're coming from. But don't worry about this anymore. You have too much to worry about with moving day coming up."

Agnes flopped back down on the bed and sighed.

"I guess you're right."

_ That and I don't feel like dealing with your stubbornness right now_, Agnes thought.

"As always," Edith joked, "But now for the actual reason I came—would you care to know it?"

"Duh."

"Well here you go."

Edith handed Agnes a small pink box. The color was faded and chipped in some places, revealing its original baby blue color; you could tell it had age to it. Agnes turned it over in her hands, studying it curiously. She finally shrugged and lifted the lid. Inside was an array of items you could find anywhere. She shuffled through it, smiling at a few of the items she saw.

A family photo of them pointing to the moon, a tiny toy unicorn, an envelope with her name on it, a small white and pink teacup, a squishy earth ball with "why want the moon?' written on it, a couple of other pictures, and a few broken toy pieces.

"What is all this stuff?" Agnes asked.

"When Margo first went off to college, Dad got the minions to make her a memory box so she could have it when she was away. Then when I went to college, even though we had that fight, she still slipped it into my things. Now, I'm passing it off to you since you're starting college. Just like I left you, Margo put a letter into mine. You can't read it until you get to college though." Agnes pouted slightly, but Edith ignored it, continuing on, "And we've both added to the box so there's a whole bunch of stuff in there to go through. Plus a little extra, from me to you."

Agnes grinned widely and set the box aside, throwing her arms around Edith. After an awkward second of reassuring herself, Edith returned the hug gingerly.

"Thanks Edith."

"No problem Agnes," said Edith, rising to her feet, "I got to get going. There are a lot of things I've got to do and I need sleep."

Agnes nodded. "Thanks for coming by, but try not to scare me so bad next time."

Edith grinned slyly. "But that's no fun! Oh! And before I forget, give this to Margo Thursday."

She handed Agnes an envelope with a big embossed silver "M" on it.

"What is it?—

"Not for you."

"Awe, come on Edith! I just want to know!"

Edith ignored Agnes and disappeared into the night. The younger sibling followed to her window and looked out into nothingness.

"At least think about coming to dinner!" Agnes called into the night, unsure if Edith could hear her.

But Edith _had_ heard, whether she listened was another story.


	6. Understandably Frustrated

Chapter Six: Understandably Frustrated

Margo had finally come to a conclusion on how she should approach Edith. Now, she just needed to work up the courage to actually follow through. Margo was unsure because she hadn't spent a lot of time with Edith since her disappearance and the profile her dad had just shown her didn't help at all. It was almost as if she didn't know who that had been in the profile. Margo was also exhausted. Between working on her plan, stressing about Edith, and helping Agnes with college; Margo was feeling a bit like a zombie. It also didn't help that she was keeping her turmoil about seeing Edith a secret from Agnes.

"Margo? Hello? Anyone home?"

Agnes waved a hand in front of Margo's face, shaking the brunette from her thoughts. Margo blinked and adjusted her glasses.

"Sorry Agnes, I'm just a little tired I guess," said Margo, offering a small smile.

"Well did you hear what I said?" Agnes asked, placing her hands on her hips.

Margo blushed and shook her head.

Agnes rolled her eyes and sighed. "What I said was; will you go with me to go shopping? I wanted to get some new clothes and a pair of new shoes for when I go to the gym."

"Oh…Sure, sure Agnes I'll go."

Agnes beamed at Margo and skipped off into the kitchen. As soon as she was away from Margo she stopped and stood there, no longer smiling. Her hazel eyes now held a mischievous determination as she glanced over her shoulder. Quickly and quietly, Agnes scampered to a far corner in the kitchen. She opened a bottom cupboard and slid in, closing the door behind her. From the outside it looked like Agnes was just crawling into the cabinets, but she had really crawled into a secret entrance to the lab. It was only used by the minions at night when Gru and the girls were asleep so the lift wouldn't wake them. One of the minions, Peter, had grown fond of Agnes and shown her the entrance. Shortly thereafter, they had created a second path that led to Agnes' personal playhouse type area. Over the years the minions had kept the décor up to date as she had gotten older. Right now it had plenty of comfy furniture, big TV's, game systems, any channel she wanted, a desk and all of the writer's equipment she would ever need.

Gru knew about the little hideout, but he didn't know its exact location. Each of his girls had been sanctioned a personal hideout so they would each have their own place to get away to. Gru also let the minions put it wherever the girls had wanted so it would remain their personal secret. To counter this, Gru had instructed the minions to give up the location should an emergency arise.

Agnes wasn't headed to her hideout though; she was headed down into the lab. She had just used the secret entrance because Margo was in the living room and she didn't want her to know she was going to the lab. She waved to several minions as they all gave her frantic waves and big smiles. Agnes just hoped her dad wasn't down her. She didn't want him to know what she was doing either. More minions stopped by to wave. Thankfully their genetic makeup meant never aging or wearing out.

"Joseph!" Agnes called, picking out the minion she was looking for.

The minion stopped and waved at her acknowledgement. He then tottered over to her, smiling broadly.

"Did you find what I asked you about?"

"Da, para good," he jabbered back as he grabbed her hand.

Joseph led her down to a little area that had a round table and a big box on it. He let go of her hand and opened the box.

"No big boss," said Joseph as he poured out the contents on the table.

Agnes looked at the item Joseph had dumped onto the table and frowned. Laying on the table in front of her was the fart gun Nefario had built in lieu of a dart gun. It wasn't what she had been expecting to receive.

"Joseph, I can't shoot her with this," said Agnes, turning to the minion who was standing quietly behind her. He merely blinked in return, raising a hand to chin for a moment of thought. After a second of posing like this, he snapped his fingers and skittered over to the gun excitedly.

"Me do!" he exclaimed, lifting the gun onto his shoulder.

Agnes hesitated. "I don't know Joseph…"

"Aww…"

Joseph looked down at his feet in disappointment. He enjoyed helping Agnes like this and he wanted to be of help any way he could. Agnes sighed and shook her head.

"I guess this is how Dad felt every time I pouted," she muttered to herself, but then perked back up, "Actually Joseph, that's a good idea! Do you think you can sneak up on her and…you know; shoot her?"

Joseph nodded excitedly, clutching the gun quite fiercely. It seemed that the little yellow minion was eager to use it and that worried Agnes slightly, but she shrugged it off.

"I don't even know why I'm doing this…" she mumbled as she followed Joseph.

Margo hadn't heard Agnes slip into the secret entrance; she was using the opportunity to openly think about the Edith dilemma. But once Agnes' disappearance went on for longer than it should have, Margo became curious. She got up and investigated the kitchen, finding no trace of her younger sister. She frowned, looking around the empty room. The kitchen only had one doorway and Agnes had gone into the kitchen, but not back out. Margo looked around, hoping Agnes wasn't planning on jumping out, but there was nothing.

As soon as she was satisfied with her search, she turned to leave the room. Margo hesitated, looking back at the room for a second longer. She sighed and exited the room, but as she turned to face back forward, she collided with Agnes. Margo yelped and pushed away from Agnes who stumbled back and landed on her butt with a low 'oof'.

"Agnes what—

Margo looked down at Agnes a little bewildered on how Agnes had come from behind her.

"Sorry Margo," said Agnes, getting to her feet.

"How…how did you?"

Agnes merely smiled cutely and tucked her hands behind her back—just as she had done as a little girl to promote her innocence. Margo raised a questioning eyebrow and studied her sister. Something fishy was going on here, she was sure of it.

"Well are you ready to go then?" Agnes asked.

Margo opened her mouth to answer, but the sound of the fart gun caught her attention. She looked behind her in time to get engulfed in a repugnant cloud of greenish-brown gas. She nearly gagged and her eyes watered. Margo looked back at Agnes with a mix of confusion and fear. She opened her mouth to say something, but the tired dizzy sensation overwhelmed her and she couldn't find her voice.

Margo slumped to the floor, with Agnes catching her. The last hazy thing Margo remembered before passing out was Agnes saying something. She could only barely make out her mouth moving, but she couldn't hear anything. Her thoughts swirled into the darkness, hung up on just why her baby sister had just done that.

oxoxoXoxoxo

Everything was far away and out of focus. Her mouth was dry and her tongue was stuck to the roof of her mouth. She raised a hand to her face and rubbed her eyes. Margo groaned and sat up, now using two hands to rub each of her eyes. That's when she noticed her glasses were missing.

"What the?—Agnes!" It all came flooding back to her; Agnes, the gun, Joseph-And the lack of explanation.

Margo squinted, but was unable to make out her surroundings. She was getting more furious as she remembered how she had just awoken this way. Agnes had gotten a minion to gas her with some sort of disgusting smelling gas. Margo strained her eyes, willing the fuzzy world around her to come into focus. She moved her hands along the floor to see if they had only just fallen off.

"Here."

Someone grabbed her hand and helped her to her feet. Margo was a little unsteady, the fuzzy stranger helping to balance her. She squinted at the shape, flinching as something was placed on her face. Margo opened her eyes, surprised that everything was in focus now. Agnes stood before her, looking a little ashamed. Margo was half tempted to retaliate somehow, but the look on Agnes' face stopped her.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on?" she asked simply.

Instead of answering, Agnes pulled away and walked to the door a couple feet away. Margo blinked several times as Agnes knocked on the door.

"This is for your own good," she said hastily as she shoved Margo's purse into her hands and walked away.

"Agnes what—

Margo turned around, the sound of the door opening interrupting her sentence. The house's occupant stood there, inexpressive to Margo's presence. Margo however, was dizzy with shock once again. She turned to look to Agnes for support, but Agnes had disappeared. Margo swallowed, trying to regain her composure.

"Uh..." she stuttered.

"Good recovery," the occupant retorted.

Margo's cheeks flushed with embarrassment, but it quickly shifted to anger.

"That's all you have to say?"

"More than what you managed."

More anger surfaced. "You disappear for this long; coerce Agnes into gassing me and dragging me here, and then you act like…like this? You haven't changed one bit Edith!"

Edith stood there, still inexpressive, and adjusted her hat. Margo's anger shifted to exasperation as she fumbled for something to say. Edith couldn't quite believe that her older sister was at such a loss for words, it was very rare for someone as quick-witted as Margo.

"And apparently neither have you," said Edith, "And for your information, I had nothing to do with this. So if you'll excuse the lack of emotion, you'll understand that I'm in the same position as you."

Margo's mouth hung open as if to say something, but nothing came out. A grin cracked across Edith's face finally as she shook her head. Margo's mouth still hung open, but with confusion now.

"I guess we really can't say Agnes doesn't have villainy in her," Edith mused, "If she gassed you and dragged you here all without either of us knowing what's going on—I'd say she's villain material if she would put her mind to it."

Margo looked in the direction that Agnes disappeared and silently agreed. Right now her voice wasn't cooperating with her brain. That had been quite the devious little maneuver on Agnes' part, especially if she hadn't been fueled by Edith.

"Before you look anymore ridiculous, you should probably come in," said Edith, turning and disappearing inside.

Margo hesitated. She had desperately wanted this chance, but now that it was here she was frozen. Agnes' decisive action had given her the solution to her problems, albeit unexpectedly.

But then again, Agnes was understandably frustrated.

Author's Note:

Okay, so I know that Agnes' behavior is a little out of character, but bear with me. She's a lot older than the movie, fed up with the situation in her house, and has access to things most of us don't. (I.E. villainous items) I toyed around with several options on what method she could use and that one seemed to fit best with Agnes and her personality. There were several other measures I could have used, but they took away from Agnes' personality. So, yeah...

Deep in the Shadows,

Ninja


	7. Behind Closed Doors Gru's secret Pt 1

Author's Note:

This chapter is pretty much just made up of fluff. It's a random idea I had that has nothing to do with the story really. Just a little bit on the relationship between Gru and the girls as the years had passed. I didn't want to write it as a one-shot, but consider it one within the story. From time to time I'll probably throw in some fluffy chapters if I like the idea enough. But here's a little tidbit of how I thought things went between the four of them as the years rolled by.

Over There Maybe,

Ninja

Chapter Five: The Defining Present

Time had been kind to Gru, despite his status as a super villain. If anything, time had only enhanced the scariness of his features. Gru did not mind this at all. What Gru did mind was that the last of his "leetle keetens" was moving out now too. Ever since the moment he vowed to never let them go, he had wanted to do just that. Gru wanted to lock the outside world away and forever live back in the days when his three little kittens were always around. Freeze time and space and just live in a world for them only.

But alas, reality had other plans. Gru knew that as time progressed he would have to come to terms with the fact that his little kittens were now cats. With all of his free time, Gru was lost. The only time life had ever been like this for him was before the girls. And he did not want to go back to being that way; it meant getting rid of them and he wouldn't do that. The mere thought of them not being around sent cold shivers down Gru's spine. It was something he never _ever_ even considered when planning out things big or small. But there were going to be times when Gru couldn't be with them because they were growing girls. This meant dates, school, college, and other various events in which Gru could not participate as he was "dad" now.

Gru was a sneaky one though. He had secretly made it so that he could monitor his girls always. (Their privacy was kept in mind too. Gru isn't like that!) Not one of the three suspected a thing—and why should they? Well, who could be suspicious of something they knew nothing about? As far as they were concerned; Gru had merely given them simple everyday items. Gru was extra proud of his ability to sneak around. It provided for the girls on more than one occasion.

This would lead one to think that Gru was quite vigilant.

However;

Birthdays always caught Gru by surprise.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't escape the inevitability of the year-round birthday.

Or the present that would define the relationship between he and his girls.

It was probably the hundredth time he had seen this video. Gru didn't care though; it was his favorite of all time. Given to him on his birthday just a couple of years before Edith left. Gru stared at the screen, preparing to watch the movie. He hadn't clicked it on yet so he could settle down into bed first.

Black silk pajamas with an embroidered silver "G" that was diamond shaped on the breast pocket; his pajamas of choice for as long as he could remember. Upon sliding them on, he brushed his teeth, used the restroom, and took a quick peek into Agnes' room as the light was still on. He was going to say good night for the seventh and last time as he always had.

"Agnes?" Gru called as he knocked gingerly on the door. It was late and he didn't want to be loud, although there was no response.

He tilted his head at the silence and tried the doorknob. It gave way to his touch and allowed him to slowly open the door to peek in. If one were to be watching from the other side of the door, imagine seeing only his nose at first, creeping into the room as if guiding him. An amusing sight to see.

"Agnes?" Gru called again, now looking around her neat, but full room as she was all packed for moving into college now.

Agnes was asleep at her desk, the light on and the pen still in her hand. She had been going through her checklist of things to pack again. Agnes could be found doing this quite frequently as she was making doubly sure she wouldn't forget a thing.

Gru was smiling at the scene, reminiscing about her childhood when Agnes decided to awaken. She rubbed her eyes and squinted at first because of the light being on.

"Why is the light on?" she grumbled, still half asleep.

"You fell asleep at your desk Agnes and left the light on," said Gru, "I was just coming to say I was going to bed now and good night. I thought you were still up."

Agnes rubbed her face a little bit more and then sat up, looking around. It all seemed to be coming back to her. She sighed and stood up, stretching her arms towards the ceiling.

"I fell asleep going over my checklist," said Agnes, "But I'll move to bed now. Good night Daddy!"

Agnes gave Gru a quick hug and flicked off the bedroom light. The room darkened, now only faintly lit by a night light plugged in beside her bed and the glow of a digital clock on her nightstand. She partially dove into the mess of blankets, pillows, and stuffed animals, snuggling into the softness. Gru smiled and closed the door behind him as he traipsed back to his room. Time to watch that video.

Just before he settled in to watch it, he double checked to make sure no one would sneak up on him only to discover that he was watching some mushy home video. But as Gru clicked on his electronics, he relished in the thought that no one would even dream of trying to sneak up on him.

The TV flickered to life and the first image was the camera adjusting so that the blue and yellow paper could be read. The lens finally focused and the TV now yielded an image of a younger Agnes holding a blue piece of construction paper with yellow words that read: "To: Daddy, From: Margo, Edith, and Agnes"

"Hi Daddy!" said TV Agnes, "This is our birthday present to you! Me, Edith, and Margo made this video for you. I hope you like it! We started working on it not long after you adopted us for good. But we split the video into three sections; mine, Edith's, and Margo's. Mine is first! Hope you like it!"

The screen went black and one word—colored white—faded onto the screen;

Agnes.

Gru smiled as his youngest daughter's portion of the video began.

"Daddy," Agnes narrated on screen, "You came and got me and Margo and Edith and you never let us go. I love you more than unicorns."

The fact that she said she loved him more than unicorns was a big statement. Gru took it to heart every time he heard it.

Pictures were flashing across the screen now. Gru settled into his bed and sighed contentedly. It wasn't often that a smile graced his villainous features, but each time he saw this tape, one would appear.

Memories of his time with his girls flashed across the screen, reminding him about that moment in time preserved forever.

"Daddy, I know that sometimes you probably thought of giving us back, but I'm glad you didn't. And instead of keeping the moon, you gave it up. Being a super villain is important to you and I know the moon was hard to give up after so much time was spent on stealing it—

Gru paused the tape and thought for a moment. He thought back to when the whole moon heist had taken place—thirteen years ago. That was such a long period of time, but it had seemingly flew by in just an instant.

_Thirteen year_s, Gru thought, _thirteen thankful years that I did not give them up_.

Gru often thought back on the day Nefario had gone behind his back and sent the girls back to Miss Hattie's. It was the only thing in Gru's entire life he ever regretted—and being a super villain showed that. He had lied, cheated, stolen, vandalized; the list went on. But every time he thought back to that day, he knew one absolute truth; he wouldn't change it for anything, even for the moon.

"—and I'm sorry you had to give it up," TV Agnes continued as Gru unpaused the movie, "But I'm glad you did. I love you Daddy, always!"

The screen flashed a few more pictures of Agnes. One always caught Gru's eye as it cycled through. It was a picture of Agnes holding as many unicorns as her seven year old arms could manage and grinning toothlessly at the TV screen. Her two front teeth had been knocked out accidentally by Edith when the two of them were jumping on the bed. All the unicorns in her arms were what it took to stop her from crying.

The screen faded to black again, another word in white fading onto the screen;

Edith.

"Dad, you're the coolest ever!-

Gru had to pause the movie again for the tight feeling that suddenly appeared in his chest. At first he was alarmed, fearing that something was wrong. As he put his hand to his chest, the feeling faded. He shrugged it off and resumed his movie.

"I don't think anyone has a cooler dad! Or a super villain for a dad either! That's okay though, I still love you I guess."

That was Edith for you. She had taken to Gru's indifference when it came to emotional moments. Much of that was from her mischievous personality, but also because of her brash and guarded demeanor. It wasn't that she was mean or unloving; she just chose to show it in a different way.

"I think it's so cool that you stole the moon," said TV Edith, "But I think it's even cooler that you gave it up for us! Besides, if you stole it once, you can steal it again right?"

Pictures of Edith were now flashing across the screen. Most of them depicted an enormous mess with Edith grinning madly in the middle of it. There were a few cute ones, but those had been hard to get. Edith was a clever one when it came to sneaking a good picture of her. She always managed to notice and ruin it with a funny face. Edith grew out of that habit of course, but every once in a while when she didn't feel like being hassled, she would make a face at the camera.

"Margo did most of the choosing for the pictures, but it's whatever. I programmed all the effects for this video! Happy birthday Dad! P.S. for my next birthday can I have a freeze ray of my own?"

Gru rolled his eyes. He had indeed gotten her that freeze ray and she, of course, managed to cause chaos. Gru had been both proud and distraught, but that was another story altogether.

"Dad, you're so amazing!"

It was Margo's section of the video.

"I know that over the years we've been a handful for you, especially by yourself. I also know that everything was new to you, but I'm glad you didn't give up. And I'm glad you didn't give _us_ up. I love you for everything you've done and for you loving us back!"

More pictures and a few silent clips were on screen now, dredging up more of these loving memories.

"Thank you for everything. We could never repay you."

_And you'll never have to_, Gru thought.

"Happy birthday Dad!" the girls chorused on TV.

The next picture to flash up made Gru pause the TV. It was a photo of Margo and Edith happily hugging one another. Edith's right hand was around Margo's shoulders while the left hand was clutching her new beanie atop her head. It was the dark blue one Margo had gotten her. Margo was hugging Edith back, glasses halfway falling off her face because of Edith's surprise hug. They looked so happy and carefree back then. Gru frowned as the mere sight of the beanie brought up memories of their argument. Edith had given Margo back the beanie after that argument; the very epicenter of their relationship. Margo had been crushed, but so had Edith. Gru tried to stay out of these matters because they were too complex for him. Mostly because it was between girls and because it gave him headaches.

After the Edith birthday photo was a photo from Margo's first birthday with Gru. That had been quite the eventful birthday if he did say so himself. The photo was of the three girls, but they were covered in white powder. Margo stood in the middle of the kitchen, an exasperated look directed toward the sister hanging from her arm. Edith was hugging her arm, grinning madly up at her older sister while Agnes sat at their feet putting handprints in the powder. Margo's twelfth birthday had resulted in Edith and Agnes taking matters into their own hands and attempting to bake a cake. Turns out Gru had been nearly out of flour so Edith decided to improvise and grab Gru's multiplier device. But being only seven and unfamiliar with the device, she caused it to malfunction and explode flour everywhere. Margo just happened to catch her in the act at the wrong moment and get covered in flour when it exploded. Gru had been mad when he first found out what happened, but as the situation was explained he couldn't remain mad. They had only wanted to make Margo a cake because she always did nice things for them on their birthday so they thought they could finally return the favor.

Up next there was a video clip of the three girls being interviewed. They were in their teens now, Margo just having hit twenty. The interviewer had been one of their friends.

Most of them were questions about favorite memories or activities and each had answered according to their personality. Margo loved intellectual moments with Gru, like when the two of them would read more advanced books together. Edith liked spending time on the shooting range; especially the time Gru let her practice on minions. Agnes liked the tea parties he had with her and the vast array of unicorns she now possessed. The last question for the three of them always made Gru swell with pride and love.

"What do you love most about your dad?" the unseen interviewer asked, "Agnes, you first."

The teenage version of Agnes put a finger to her chin and tilted her head in thought. She seemed to be pondering on the question pretty thoroughly.

"Um," she answered, "Well, he's a really nice guy and he saved us from Miss Hattie, but what I like most..."

She paused and thought for another second before excitedly answering,

"The book he wrote for us too! _One Big Unicorn_! It's the inspiration for my career!"

"Edith, you next."

The seventeen year old Edith bounced her legs as she sat in silence. Her hat didn't have the strings anymore so she settled for twirling a strand of blonde hair poking out from underneath her dark blue beanie. Margo had gotten it for her just after she had outgrown the pink one. It had quickly become the new favorite.

"He loves me just like I am!" she answered, "And he has cool toys."

"Okay, Margo you go."

Twenty year old Margo didn't even hesitate. "Because he wanted us when no one else did. Dad rescued us from Miss Hattie's and probably a life of misery. And he wanted _all_ of us, not just one of us."

The scene faded away and was replaced by words on the screen that read;

Happy birthday Dad. We love you more than the moon! Love, Margo, Edith, and Agnes.

The video was over and Gru was left sitting in his bed, a smile still on his face. No matter how many times he watched this video, he was left with a feeling of new appreciation for his girls. The interview with Margo always made his chest tighten.

_"Because he wanted us when no one else did."_

Those words constantly rang in his ears, giving him new determination to love them with all his might.

With a fleeting glance to a Christmas photo sitting atop his dresser, Gru fell into a deep sleep, and dreamed of a Christmas once past…

oxoxoXoxoxo

Author's Note:There's Part One! Part Two is soon to follow! As always; reviews are welcome!


	8. Resolve, Intrigue, and Sweet Vegeance

Author's Note:

Okay, so wow. Been a minute much? Sorry about that. I can get caught in a multitude of different projects and usually end up neglecting a few of them. Unfortunately, this one of the victims. My computer had to be wiped clean and all my writings for this fanfic were lost. So I've been working from scratch. And having come back and given this another once over I realized that the numbering isn't adding up. Maybe I should be back in elementary school. It's in proper order in the table of contents, but if you look at the titles on the individual chapters, you'll notice something is a bit...off.

But I digress...Here's the latest installment. Not the second part of the fluffy chapter, but the next chapter in the story. Enjoy! And as always, reviews are mucho loved!

Floating Undetected,

Ninja

**xoxoXoxox**

Chapter Seven: Resolve, Intrigue, and Sweet Vengeance

Margo felt like she was walking around in a dream. Everything seemed so surreal as she followed Edith into her home. It was quite stylish and modern, but simple. Margo was a little disappointed to see that Edith didn't display her exploits around her home as their father had for so long. Not that it didn't look nice and all; she had just been hoping for some clues about her sister's life over the past year. Margo hesitated in the hall as Edith disappeared behind a swinging door. She had caught sight of a collage of pictures that nearly took her breath away. It was filled with family photos, memorable event photos, and right in the center—largest of all—was the picture of the four of them pointing to the moon.

_Why want the moon?_

Those words were written boldly at the top of the collage. It nearly brought tears to Margo's eyes. So she hadn't forgotten about her family after all.

"Margo?"

The swinging door whooshed open. Margo shot her hand out to catch it so it wouldn't hit her in the face. Edith peered around the edge of it, seeing where Margo has disappeared to. She noticed Margo standing in front of the family collage. Edith resisted the urge to frown and instead forced a half grin.

"Get lost Margo?" she asked, stepping out from behind the door.

Margo blushed, her mouth hanging open as she searched for a reply. Edith crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head, a smug grin now on her face.

"If it's exploits you're after, then you'll have to go to my lab," said Edith, "It's a small town so anonymity is everything."

Margo's mouth formed an 'O' and she nodded. Edith waved for her to follow and disappeared behind the swinging door once again. Margo followed as Edith began digging through the refrigerator. She pulled out a couple of bottles of water and set one in front of Margo. Edith adjusted her dirty gray beanie and took a generous gulp from her bottle of water. Margo looked at the beanie with disdain. It brought back memories she didn't care to relive.

"So…what makes Agnes bring you here?" Edith asked, despite knowing the answer.

Margo toyed with her bottle of water in silence. How was she going to tell Edith that Agnes had forced her here because of…well, because of her fear and leftover anger…

Margo adjusted her glasses and looked at Edith. The middle sister stared at Margo, expecting an answer at any second. Margo was sure she was just waiting for an apology.

"Well, Dad figured out where you were," Margo began, pausing to think for a second. "And…well, I need your help with something and Agnes just got frustrated with me…and…here I am…"

Edith studied Margo as the elder sister suddenly became interested in her bottle of water. It seemed that help wasn't the only thing Margo was seeking. Bitter thoughts of their past flooded Edith's mind making her glance away. She caught sight of the beanie she wore in the reflection of her microwave and froze. She now fully understood what Agnes had gotten frustrated about. She remembered her conversation with Agnes several nights ago and the sudden frustration that had surfaced when the topic had been brought up. It made sense why Agnes was so intent on fixing it. Not only was Edith being stubborn about it all, but so was Margo and being caught in the middle was no fun. Should she suck it up and just apologize or wait for Margo to do it first? Indecision was feeling she detested more than most, especially in moments like these.

_Why is apologizing so difficult!_ Edith thought bitterly. _Oh yeah, because you were wrong and have to admit it._

Edith swallowed, opened her mouth, and then closed it. Her throat was suddenly dry. She opened her water bottle and took a large gulp from it. As she tried to screw the cap back on, it slipped from her fingers and fell to the floor. Edith sighed and bent down to retrieve it. As her fingers clasped the little plastic lid, Margo's voice floated down to her.

"I'm sorry!"

Shock overwhelmed Edith and she stood up swiftly, banging her head on the underside of the counter. Edith attempted to stand once more taking a more careful approach, rubbing the back of her head.

"What?" Edith asked, still unsure if she had actually heard Margo apologize.

Margo took a deep breath. "I said "I'm sorry". That argument was so stupid and I handled it all wrong. I just didn't want you to go get hurt-

Edith held up a hand, silencing Margo. She closed her fingers so that she was holding only her index finger up. She needed a second to gather her thoughts. This whole situation was becoming way too emotional for her liking, but if she was to move forward with things she would just have to live with it and move on. Edith was just glad she wasn't the one to break the ice with the apologies.

"No, you were right to worry," said Edith, "We were both in the wrong. I overreacted too. Running off like I did was childish and immature. Besides, you were right to worry about me getting hurt."

Margo narrowed her eyes at Edith. "What did you do?" she asked accusingly.

Edith shrugged. "That's not the point. What did you need my help with? I know that's why you came-besides the making up thing."

The subject change hadn't gone unnoticed, but Margo decided to let it go. No sense in causing another argument so soon after fixing the first one.

"Actually, yes...let me just...get my folder..."

Margo dug through her purse, trying to locate said folder with her plans in it. She shuffled the contents around, her hand grazing something made of fabric. At first she was confused, but as she pulled out the dark blue beanie she realized what it was. At the same moment she realized what it was so did Edith. Her blue-gray eyes flicked back and forth between the beanie and her sister, clearly unable to hide her shock. Margo laid the hat on the counter, pushed it towards Edith, and offered a small smile.

Edith picked up the beanie. "You...you kept it?" She raised her hand to rest on the dirty gray one on her head. The last time she had seen the blue one had been when she shoved it back into Margo's hands and declared she didn't want it anymore. She now realized that the hat symbolized more than just a gift between sisters; it was proof that her family really did care for her. And Edith found herself fighting another tumult of emotional waves.

"I held onto it so I could give it back to you when things were finally resolved," Margo replied, "And I suppose now is as good as ever. But that wasn't what I needed your help with..."

Margo dug in her purse once more and finally retrieved the folder she was after. She opened it up, turned it around, and set it in front of Edith. Slowly a devious smile overcame Edith's face which gradually spread into a wide grin bursting with joy.

"Why do you need my help disposing of Miss Hattie?" she asked wryly, "This isn't exactly rocket science..."

Margo rolled her eyes. "I've got all that figured out; paperwork, plans, vengeance-the whole nine yards. I just thought you might like to help and I wanted you to help me redesign the whole orphanage. And once Miss Hattie is _legally_ disposed of, you can have your fun with her afterwards. Simple as that."

Edith nodded, pondering on the various possibilities that flashed into her mind. Just entertaining those few ideas got her excited about helping her sister.

"Question; Why take over Miss Hattie's? That seems so...Robin Hood," Edith asked.

"Well, simply put, orphan girls deserve better," answered Margo, "I want revenge on that horrible woman and I was going to use villainous exploits to fund the place. Where we came from weighs heavily on me and makes me appreciate Dad so much more. I'm not saying you don't, but I was older so it was much more impressionable on me than you or Agnes. And I plan on using the orphanage to launder some money, so there's that."

Edith nodded, smiled broadly, switched beanies, and then crossed her arms over her chest. "Sweet vengeance..."

Silence fell over the duo, leaving Margo a little confused. Edith seemed to be lost in her own thoughts, leaving Margo awaiting an answer.

"So are you going to help me or not?" she asked impatiently.

Edith smiled. "I just have one more question."

Margo rolled her eyes, mumbled several swear words under her breath, and then looked back at Edith expectantly. She grew a little more flustered as she noticed the mischievous smile on Edith's face. Apparently she was drawing this out just to irritate Margo.

_Some things will never change._

"Get on with it, will you?" she exclaimed, throwing her hands up and then crossing them on the counter.

"When do we start?" Edith asked as she began laughing.

Margo dropped her head onto her arms with a groan. Maybe she should rethink asking for Edith's help.

**xoxoXoxox**

****Author's Note:

So there it is! Chapter seven. Sorry it has taken so long to update. I've been desperately trying to play catch up on all my stories that have been lost. But nevertheless, here it is! Read, review, and enjoy!

Invisibly There,

Ninja


	9. ATTN Info

ATTENTION ALL READERS:

First allow me to inform all of you that I have NOT abandoned this story! I know my prolonged absence has led you all to believe otherwise, but this is not so! I still love this story and have no intentions of discontinuing.

Secondly, the cause of my disappearance has been the result of a lot of factors. Mainly that I have no internet and my computer has completely crashed and died. This brief period I have access is what I'm using to tell you that I have continued to write and have accumulated a fair amount of chapters to be posted when I am able.

Until I am able to return, please don't stop reading, reviewing, or even suggesting ideas. I may not be able to update, but I have limited access allowing me to monitor everything involving my story. Don't give up hope! I am praying, hoping, and doing everything in between to ensure that I will be able to start updating again this following September. Keep your fingers crossed for me! I look forward to fulfilling your reading needs!

Eternally skulking,

Ninja


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